Only Direction for Me
by ObsessFirstAskQuestionsLater
Summary: Rene  is a dancer for One direction, reluctantly. Even she can't resist the charms of Liam Payne. He's beautiful and he loves her, so why isn't it enough? Liam proves how far he'd go for her. Now it's her turn to step up. Rated M for later Chapters.Lemons
1. First Glimpse

Rene` POV:

"I can't believe we're really here auditioning! Ray, what if they choose us?"Ginny was so excited I wouldn't be surprised if she started to cry.

"_You're _auditioning. _You _might get chosen," I reminded her softly, stepping back as a line of dancers crossed my path. I was here strictly for moral support, as I promised her.

"It's complete rubbish. You're better than everybody here yet you refuse to audition," Ginny spat, flipping her pale red hair over her shoulder.

"You're the one obsessed with these _One Direction _people." I grumbled watching two girls stretch and giggle. I didn't know much about the band, I'd only been in England long enough to finish school and I'd had to work my ass off to get the dance scholar ship that landed me in the U.K. No time for fan-girling.

"Oh shut it. You even admitted they were cute." Ginny muttered, her eyes cutting towards the door every five seconds.

"Yes. I said they were cute. I didn't say I would sign up to doo-whop and shake my ass behind them during their tour." I got a few nasty looks for that one, from pretty much any girl within hearing range. Ginny pretended she couldn't hear me, the only indication that she had being the rosy tint of anger that colored her pale cheeks. I for one didn't understand. Ginny was beautiful. She had the body of a dancer, the personality of a comedian, and could get any guy she wanted. But she was hung up on this boy band.

"Alright everyone, are you about ready?" A man with a headset had walked in, a list in one hand, a walkie talkie in the other. Bodies around the room stiffened in anticipation, the giggling girls straightened up and began ringing their hands. "When I call your name, please tell me the number we've given you: Ginny Ashford." Of course, her name was first. Ginny quickly looked down at the paper that had been taped across her stomach.

"913," she answered in an uncharacteristically nervous voice. The man nodded, scribbled something down on his list, and began again. The room was packed full of girls so it took a while for it to get there but when it did I nearly choked to death on the water I'd been stealing from Ginny's bottle.

"Rene` Grint?" The man called, the same bored tolerance in his voice.

"394!" Ginny shouted before I could even finish coughing.

"Don't be mad Ray! I'm sorry! I can't do this without you. Please, please, please, just audition with me. You don't have to go on tour with them or anything, but please…" Ginny tried to say it all before I could recover, knowing I wouldn't let her explain. "And would it really be that awful if you were one of the dancers chosen? What do you really have waiting for you back in Detroit? An empty house and a note from your brothers telling you that they're off doing God know what but not to worry?"

She was right of course. Home had nothing for me since mom died. Bobby, Jerry, Jack, and Angel were all older, moving on with their own lives. They might just be my adopted brothers, but they were like blood to me. It would be tough to go home and have nothing to do but worry about them and miss mom. An eighteen year old girl can only handle so much.

"Listen, Ray, if we do this, if they pick us, we can spend a whole year together. We'll make money we'll have fun. You won't have to worry about getting a job waitressing or…" she lowered her voice considerably, whispering my deepest fear, "pole dancing god forbid." Just the thought sent shivers down my spine.

"Rene` we could do this." I was surprised by the intensity in her eyes, shocked to find that I was nodding.

Ginny's face broke into a smile. She knew she had won. And in all honesty she was right. I needed this but I'd been too blind, or too stubborn to see it. Having a steady job doing something I love beat the hell outta anything I'd find in Detroit.

I took the slightly crumbled square of paper she'd had hidden in her gym bag and placed it delicately across my stomach. I was immensely grateful we'd just come from the gym because I still had on my baggy yoga pants and T-shirt. It may have been a lot less sexy than the sports bras and booty shirts some of the braver girls had opted for, but it would work. I slipped the ponytail holder from my wrist and put my jet black hair in a messy bun. Maybe, if I got really lucky one of these boys would pick me for my exotic looks alone.

"Okay! Positions please!" The bald man with the headset called us all to attention and naturally about four long rows were formed in the room. An older woman long, frizzy brown hair stepped to the front of the room. The boys were nowhere in sight so I knew this was just round 1. My fears were confirmed when the frizzy haired woman spoke.

"Hello ladies, I'm Amber! If you've made it here then congratulations! We only accepted auditions from girls with outstanding recommendations from their teachers and the best audition tapes."

"How did you give them an audition tape of me without me knowing?" I hissed to Ginny. She shrugged her thin shoulders.

"Kinda videotaped you when you were warming up," she whispered back. This was one of the reasons Ginny and I clicked so well. We were both blunt, harshly unapologetic. I'd had to be though. Growing up in the hood with four bad-ass brothers didn't leave too much room for softness. Ginny, I think, was just born with it.

"Don't worry Ray. They loved you're audition tape and you weren't even trying." I smiled and focused my attention on Amber once more.

"I'm going to do a simple routine and you're going to copy me. We will try it a few times together and then you'll do it on your own. If Jimmy comes by and taps you on the shoulder—" she motioned absentmindedly to a middle aged man on the left. "Please move to the side without complaint. If you don't get tapped on the shoulder by the time the music stops, you've made it to round two." The way she said _round two _made a cold chill run down my spine.

"In the second round the boys will be choosing the winners, and unfortunately there will only be five girls chosen, one for each boy." Well great. Five teenage boys would be picking the dancers. They wouldn't be choosing based on talent. They'd pick us based on who has the biggest breasts and the smallest waist. _Lovely. _

The music started almost immediately. It was pop-ish and had a good beat but I'd never heard it before. Amber turned towards the wall length mirror, watching all of our reflections behind her as she started to sway her hips to the music. My body fell in time with hers, the way I moved my hips a little more like Shakira than her movements. The girl in front of me had short blond hair and her motions were very jerky. I had a feeling it was the nerves getting to her.

I felt bad, I wanted to make her relax but I had no idea how. Besides, if she was this nervous now she really had no business dancing on stage in front of thousands of people. I felt bad for even thinking it, but couldn't deny its truth.

"Now each winner will perform a different dance with the band member that chooses her. That's the point. They are trying to add some variety to their concerts. Because anyone of the boys could choose you, you have to be able to do all the dances. Now, copy me ladies." Amber folded her body almost half in a solo dip, one hand stretched to the ground as if longing to touch. I recognized the move easily; I'd used it in one of my contemporary routines my freshman year. I heard Ginny's trilling laugh as she completed the move as effortlessly as me.

"Very good," Amber praised us, the only two who had already copied her. The girl with the short hair in front of me fell over and Jimmy came to tap her on the shoulder.

"No! No! Please I can do this!" she said frantically, scrambling up from the floor. As Jimmy shook his head, jutting his thumb to the side of the room, my heart ached for her. Tears were falling freely from her eyes all for boys who probably won't even care that she was here. I wondered if they'd at least give her an autograph if they passed her on her way out. Obsessions never made sense to me. When I was little I was too busy getting shuffled from foster home to foster home to fall in love with someone on TV I'd never get the chance to meet. But I imagine falling for a face and being able to create the rest in your mind would be a hard thing to let go of. You could make the perfect man in your head and you'd never know if they weren't as amazing as you anticipated they would be. The recipe for disaster.

The girl released a strangled sort of sob and all but crawled over to the side of the room.

"Rene`! Pay attention." Ginny saw my eyes following the poor girl to the corner and snapped me back to attention. I nodded to her, following the next move Amber demonstrated with as much ease as the first one. As hard as I could I couldn't shake the feeling that I was taking someone's dream. Or maybe, I was saving it. If they never got to meet these boys then they couldn't be let down. People always let you down.

Liam POV:

"I am way too excited," Niall admitted, bouncing on the heels of his feet to peer through the small square of glass on the door to the dance studio.

"Me too. What are they looking like Niall? Any cute ones?" Louis asked, elbowing me playfully in the ribs. Part of me didn't want Niall to answer. I loved the boys, really I did but sometimes I hated the way they talked about woman. How easily they reduced their worth to the length of their legs and their skill at sucking cock. Niall wasn't as bad; I had a little more faith in him.

"Really, really hot man. There are two in the back I'd give my left arm to have a go at." Niall answered, making Harry and Louis groan in appreciation.

"Go on! What do they look like?" Zayn demanded, suddenly interested in the conversation.

"One's got reddish hair and some freckles. I'm having a really hard time keeping my eyes off her arse. And the other one boys, _oh my God,_" he moaned, giving a dramatic pause. "She's got black hair. She looks like she's like mixed with white and Latina 'cause she's got a wicked tan. Body like I've never seen…bloody hell." By this point Louis has shoved him away from the door so he could get a better look himself.

Upon apparently spotting the pair Niall had pointed out he released a low whistle.

"Wow, what I wouldn't give for an hour alone with her," Louis said cheekily.

"Which one? Kinda got a thing for red heads me self," Niall murmured, subtly asking the rest of us to let him have her.

"No worries mate. She's all yours," Louis nodded.

"Hey don't go promising things," Harry protested, earning a nod of agreement from Zayn.

"Why so quiet Liam? Not gunna put a bid in for a girl?" Zayn asked me. He may have been the calmest of the other boys but he still had his moments where he would slip up. Like right now for example. I knew he was dying to take a look through the door. His ego was holding him back though I'd imagine.

"Even you have to want a hot dancer. We're going to be spending hours upon hours with these girls." He muttered.

"Then she should have a good personality." There was a small silence as each of the boys looked at me like I'd morphed into an alien. Crap. I keep forgetting. Its statements like this that left me a victim at school. I was always bullied, nearly expelled for fights because I had a tendency to speak my mind. Other teenage boys rarely liked my opinions.

"I guess a nice bum wouldn't hurt either," I added hastily. They all laughed, Zayn slapped me on the back and I forced a smile.

A few minutes later a man stepped outside the dance studio. He was bald, the lights overhead gleaming off his scalp.

"Hello boys," he greeted us, rubbing his plump stomach. "We've got about ten ladies left for you to choose from. They've all already proven they can learn steps quickly and they're all very good. And may I just say, we've got quite a few lookers in the bunch," he said with a carrying laugh and a wink in our direction. Harry and Louis laughed and high fived.

"So we've got it set up so that each of the girls will perform separately for you. It's the same routine but they're allowed to add their own adjustments if they would like too. The order in which you will get to choose is as follows: Liam Payne, Harry Styles, Niall Horan, Louis Tomlinson, and Zayn Malik."

Zayn swore under his breath.

"Damn Harry gets to choice before me," Niall complained to me. He didn't seem particularly concerned with _me_ being able to select a dancer before him. Apparently he didn't feel like I was a threat to him getting his red head.

"I'm sure Harry will stay away from your ginger mate."

"Yeah, he'll go for that other girl for sure." Niall seemed to be reassuring himself, and still was when the bald man spoke again.

"Alrighty then. We're ready for you boys now," he boomed, lowering the walkie talkie from his ear. When he opened the door a stream of teary eyed girls exited, there had to be at least thirty of them. Some screamed when they saw us, one jumped into my arms and gave me a bone crushing hug. Others just cried harder and rushed past us. My heart went out to them; I was tempted to ask if I couldn't just choose one of them anyway. I was rubbing the back of the girl who was hugging me, soft soothing circles as she sobbed into the hollow of my neck.

"It's alright darlin'," I whispered into her ear, trying to hug her back just as passionately as she was hugging me, it was the least I could do. She had a short, pixie, blond hair cut and her mascara was running down her tear tracked cheeks.

"I r-r-r-really w-w-w-w-wanted to w-w-w-win," she cried.

"I'm sure you are a lovely dancer. Don't give up." The others had already gone into the studio but I couldn't just leave her. She was a wreck.

"Mr. Payne?" I looked up at the woman who'd called my name. She had damaged, brown hair and sweat running down her forehead. She tapped the imaginary watch on her wrist. "We're kind of on a schedule."

"Are you going to be alright sweetheart?" The girl still clung to me and I didn't have the heart to pull her off.

"Mr. Payne?" The woman said again, sharper this time.

"Hey! Give him a minute would you? Damn!" the voice that addressed the woman was American which shocked me a little more than it should have. Obviously it wasn't one of the boys so it had to be one of the dancers. Pretty gutsy. Very gutsy really.

"Excuse me? Would you like to leave too?"

"No!" I practically shouted. There was a rather long pause since my four band mates had shouted protests the same time as I did. It was very clear the woman was no longer in control here. The blonde slowly unwrapped herself from around me, aware she was making a scene, and scurried down the hallway. When I finally entered the room I think it's fair to say everything was sufficiently awkward. There were ten dancers lining the back wall to the studio. It wasn't hard to find the one who'd spoken; the frizzy haired woman was staring daggers at her. And my God, she was every bit as beautiful as the boys had said.

Her hair was up in a way that was just sloppy enough to be deemed unimaginably sexy. Her skin was an intoxicating copper color and her baggy clothes did nothing to hide the striking body underneath. She was the only girl I'd ever seen whose very essence could beg you to touch her. She was panting slightly, from anger or exertion I did not know. I'd imagined my perfect girl before but my imagination could have never come up with anything as perfect as this, as her.

"Hi, I'm Liam." I hadn't even realized I'd spoken but it's like my mouth had started working before my brain. The girl looked from me to the girl next to her in confusion. I heard Zayn snicker behind me.

"Um…hey," she said lamely, hiding a smile. I'd just made a complete fool of myself. But only part of my brain was aware of that. The other half was just desperate to _know _her. I was still staring at her, unable to make my eyes as much as blink. The girl gave an uncomfortable little half wave and something made me snap out of it. I laughed half heartedly and fell into line with the rest of the boys, who were now silently cracking up. Harry was laughing so hard he was literally wheezing. I guess I understood. That was incredibly stupid, even for me.

"Well ladies I suppose you know who these lovely lads are. One direction: Liam Payne, Harry Styles, Niall Horan, Louis Tomlinson, and Zayn Malik. And boys, I am Amber," the woman said briskly. "The first lady to dance for you will be…" she looked to the man with the headset.

"Number 913, Ginny Ashford." He supplied. The girl with red hair stepped up. She was shaking a bit but I tried to smile, show her we were all on her side. I heard Niall's sharp intake of breath, willing no one else to pick her before him. I knew Harry heard it too. He was a good guy, he wouldn't pick a girl Niall wanted this badly.

Ginny walked to the center of the room, her eyes flicking briefly to us and then to the stereo. She nodded quickly to show she was ready. The music started and she folded over, and then slipped to the ground. The movements flowed together so well they almost looked like they were one. In the end she was very good, only a few small missteps showing how nervous she really was. None of the other boys were really as interested in dance as I was so I doubt they even noticed. When she finished she straightened herself out, smiled at us and then practically ran back to her place in the line of girls. The girl I still couldn't take my eyes off of gave Ginny's hand a small squeeze.

All of us clapped respectfully except Niall who wolf whistled and whooped loudly. She giggled and winked at him. Niall, being well…Niall, feigned fainting and we all laughed even harder.

"Yes, yes, that was pretty good. Next up…"

Rounds of girls were called after that. Becky, Linda, Jasmine, and Kadyna were all good but repetitive. I felt Harry perk up a bit when the sixth girl was called.

"Number 819, Claire Demonte." The girl who stepped forward was blonde as she could be. She was the shortest of the bunch with her hair made up into spunky little curls that were falling limp after the long days work. She was right up Harry's alley.

Her routine was much the same as the first girls but a lot flirtier. I almost felt a bit awkward watching her because of how sensual her dance became. However, when she was done we all clapped and she dropped back into place.

Amber called two more girls, Caroline and Silvia. Every time a name was called I found myself mulling over it in my mind wondering if it belonged to my little American girl. But Caroline was a brown haired girl with a belly button ring and Silver was a slightly chubby girl with braces. All four of these dances were lovely, but the same. The most original was Ginny's by far but it still kind of felt like we were replaying a movie again and again.

"Number 394, Rene` Grint." The man called once Silver had returned to her spot. I watched the swell of dancers carefully, my breath catching a little when she moved to the center of the room. _Rene` Grint _I tested the name in my mind, thinking I'd never heard a name so wonderful. Then again, by this point I was a little bias. Even when she was motionless, waiting for the music to start playing she was graceful. Her eyes flashed to mine, they were a beautiful honey brown color that left a sweet taste in my mouth. Her mouth twitched in that sexy almost smile way of hers and the music started. Instantly, the dance was fascinatingly different than the others. At first the steps were the same. She folded backwards, her fingers stretched to the ground almost, but not quite touching it. Then, the dance changed. She locked her arms into her body as if she'd finally grasped what she'd been reaching for and then jumped up and down, her legs constricting and straightening in two sharp stomps that went perfectly with the music.

The room was deadly silent as she did what looked like a cartwheel but her hands never touched the floor, her arms still hugged tightly to her chest. This dance was powerful, it made you ache. Slowly, as if it pained her she opened her arms in short, purposeful little jerks. The message was clear: if you love something set it free. But it was hard to watch. I wanted, with everything in me, for her to have what she so desperately longed for. But then the music stopped and the agonized look on her face transformed into a little smirk. It was endlessly quiet. We could have heard a pen drop.

When it became clear no one was going to recover she sent a curt nod in our direction and went back to stand next to Ginny.

"I said you could tweak the routine not completely change it!" Amber finally snapped. That woke us all up. Everyone was clapping, even the other dancers. One girl had actual tears in her eyes.

"You should be disqualified," Amber was trying to shout over the noise. It took her a considerably long time to quiet us down and by then she seemed to have lost her fire and simply called the last girl, Trina, to the 'stage.' She didn't seem too thrilled to be following René's performance. I didn't blame the girl. When she'd finished she received a much less enthusiastic round of applause that I tried to make up for by clapping harder.

"Okay thank you everyone. You all did a wonderful job. Now the boys have very busy schedules and they, and the dancers they choose, need to be ready to learn a new dance right away because they will be going on tour next week." I could tell by the widening of eyes and gasps from the dancers that this was sooner than any of them expected.

"Okay so let's get started. Liam you're first."

"Well all of you were great," I began. My heart was beating so hard it felt like it was trying to escape from my ribcage. Half the boys would hate me for picking her, but how could I not?

"Oh just get on with it and pick the hot American," Harry said loudly. There were a few little bursts of laughter from about the room and I wringed the back of my neck in embarrassment.

"Yeah, alright, Rene`," I muttered, looking down.


	2. Taking Action

Rene` POV:

I'm pretty sure my heart melted into a puddle on the floor when Liam had been so nice to the girl who'd hugged him at the door. I'd never seen that kind of compassion from a guy; then again I hadn't seen many really nice guys. But ever since he'd walked in I'd been very aware of his eyes on me. The way his eyes washed over my body didn't make me feel cheap or like some sort of object. His gaze was almost…worshipful.

"Yeah, alright, Rene`," he said softly, looking at his feet. I bumped my hip against Ginny's as if to say _I got a cutie, be jealous _and slowly walked across the room to where he stood. We didn't speak but when I came to stand next to him he met my eyes and I shivered slightly.

"Good luck with that one," Amber said passive aggressively.

"Jealous old bat." It was out of my mouth before I could stop myself but it was quiet, she had no hope of hearing. But Liam laughed a nice strong laughed that seemed to regenerate throughout my body and it was totally worth it.

"Harry?" Amber coaxed.

"Uh…" Harry looked around, his eyes lingering on Ginny for a moment before he regretfully pulled them away.

"Number 819." He muttered. Charming, he couldn't even remember her name.

Clair gave a little squeal of delight that made Harry wince with annoyance and she ran to take her place next to him.

"Niall?"

"Ginny!" he said much too quickly. I laughed as Ginny collected her gym bag and skipped over to him. I was happy for her, Niall was her favorite member of the band, and she was constantly talking about him. She'd never complain but I knew she would have been a little disappointed if he hadn't chosen her.

"Louis?"

"Uh…" it took him a while but finally he said, "Caroline I think." The girl's smile was almost feline as she strutted over to him, her entire midsection revealed for the sole purpose of showing off her belly ring.

Zayn was last and he was none too happy about it. "Becky," he muttered half-heartedly. She certainly wasn't the best out of the remaining girls but she was definitely the one with the biggest rack.

"Ok well I'm very sorry to those of you who didn't make it. Better luck next time." Amber didn't sound sorry. In fact she sounded like this was her favorite part of the job. She ushered them out the door, pretending not to notice their tears.

"I'll give everyone a minute to meet and I'll come back when the limousine is here to collect you all." She closed the door behind her leaving us all alone with just ourselves and the fat guy with the headset who clearly took his job much too seriously.

"Hello incredibly hot dancers! We are One Direction!" Harry announced loudly. Liam turned to look at me and rolled his eyes like _you see what I live with? _I rolled my eyes too and took a step closer to him.

"I'm Rene`. Thanks for picking me." It was kind of weird, thanking a guy for choosing me.

"I'm Liam. And you're very welcome. And that dance…wow. You were unbelievable."

"Thanks. You were pretty impressive yourself."

He raised his eyebrows in confusion and I knew I'd put my foot in my mouth.

"I just mean…that girl at the door. It was really nice how you handled that."

He shrugged like it was no big deal, but it was, it really was. I scanned the room, searching for Ginny. I found her standing next to Niall, laughing loudly at something that he'd said. She was in flirt mode. Hardcore flirt mode. She kept playfully shoving his shoulder and throwing her head back when she laughed.

"Looks like my friend has a crush." I immediately regretted saying it. I mean, it was pretty obvious but I still felt like I was sharing a secret.

"Yeah. Pretty sure I have one too." Liam said casually. When I looked up at him his brown eyes were glistening and he looked so ridiculously cute I was tempted to go ahead and throw myself in his arms. Instead I winced.

"Listen, Liam, you're really cute. And I get it; the whole boy band thing has to give you some sort of complex. And I know normally you could probably get any girl you want but I take dancing really seriously. I need this job, I can't get involved with my…uh…boss." It was really hard to say, mostly because I was already forming a pretty intense crush on him.

"Ugh please don't call me your boss," he said quickly. "But I really get it. We'll be completely professional. Just acknowledge that's a lot to ask of a hormonal teenage boy." He smiled easily, his white teeth flashing briefly.

"I appreciate the effort," I assured him.

"Ohmygod! Rene`! Rene`!" I stumbled as Ginny plowed into me. She was grinning from ear to ear like her face might crack.

"Niall picked me! I can't believe it!" her eyes were sparkling with tears. She slowly looked up at Liam.

"Hey Liam." I knew it was hard for her to control her insane love for all of them. Actually, most of the girls were crying and getting pictures on their phone. Louis' girl was fawning all over him and Zayn's girl had her breasts pushed up to her neck. While I had already lain down the _I can't date you _rule with Liam. Maybe that's why he was interested, I was a change.

"Aye, nice to meet you." I turned around as the cute blonde hair, blue eyed boy approached me. Niall extended his hand and I shook it, surprisingly taken by his crooked smile.

"See you've met Liam. Think you're gunna be able to handle dealing with this one for a whole year?" Niall's joking put me at ease, his arm slung casually over my shoulders.

"Hard to tell, but I think it could be okay," I mused, scrutinizing Liam. They both laughed and Liam pulled me out of Niall's arms.

"Hands off my girl," he teased. As we stood with my back pressed against his chest and his arms around my shoulders I felt like we were already on the path to breaking our one and only rule. But it was freezing in the dance studio and he was just so warm.

"Don't need her mate. I've got my own," Niall pulled Ginny to him and I swear I saw her swoon. It's was hard to believe this was the same girl I once saw karate chop a guy who slapped her ass.

"Yeah well…" Liam lowered his voice considerably and leaned forward. "It's clear we got the two best dancers ever."

"Thanks _Liam,_" Ginny gushed. She sounded kind of crazy and I guess that's because she kind of was but I was finding it hard not to laugh.

"Would you guys like to meet the rest of the band?" Niall asked us, looking around at the rest of his group. Zayn and Harry were already looking over at us which made me excruciatingly aware of Liam's arms around me.

Trying to be polite I pulled out of his embrace and started off towards the other boys.

"Yeah, who are we meeting first?" Niall took the lead, practically hopping over to the clump of people we'd been neglecting. I think I had all their names down by this point and really, they weren't a bad looking group of boys.

It was Zayn who claimed my attention first.

"Hello." He grabbed my hand and brought it to his lips. I jerked out of his hold, so taken aback I was borderline insulted.

"Oh, sorry. I'm just, not really used to that. I'm Rene` by the way." Ginny was behind me, giggling like mad.

"Rene`, Rene`, it's Zayn," she whispered in my ear.

"Thanks Gin I got it." Zayn laughed and introduced himself to her as well. She didn't snatch away when he kissed her hand.

I could feel Liam behind me and I turned, just a little to look up at him. He was one of those guys that was hard to look away from. Even in nothing more than jeans and a T-shirt he was gorgeous, making me wish I wasn't in workout clothes on our first meeting. His muscles were straining against the fabric of his shirt, giving you a hint at what was underneath. It was really heard to tear my eyes away.

"And I'm Harry." Harry had simply left Clair alone so he could come talk to us. He was smiling confidently. It was a smile that said _I know I'm cute _and to be honest, it kind of annoyed me.

"Hey," I nodded, absent mindedly leaning back into Liam. I just, naturally shied away from cockiness.

"It's nice to meet you. I think this is going to be a really fun tour." His accent was cute, he was cute really, but he was very aware of this.

"Yeah, hopefully. Your dancer seems really nice," Ginny piped up.

"And she's really hot," he said, more to the boys than us.

"Well let's hope she's good at shaking her ass behind you then and we're all set." I had no filter, literally none. I should really try and get one. Harry looked startled but he just laughed.

"You're funny. I like you," he declared.

"Thanks." Ginny elbowed me.

Hanging out with these boys may not be as great as I'd originally thought.

Liam POV:

When Amber told us out limo was here I was a little nervous about the girls. Some of them were clearly dying for the attention but others; well I didn't know how they'd handle it. The door to the studio opened and the roar was absolutely deafening. I'd grown used to it but I saw Ginny shrink into Niall, something close to fear in her eyes.

"Liam! Liam! I LOVE YOU!" a fan in the front screamed for me, tears running down her face. I checked to make sure Rene` seemed okay. She looked shockingly unfazed, her face calm and unperturbed. She did shield her eyes from the cameras but that was all. With her nerves under control I stepped out of the building; putting René's hand in mine so I wouldn't lose her in the madness. Bodyguards flanked us as we tried to make our way from point A to point B. I stopped along the way to give a few fans a one armed hug and we were the first pair to make it into the limo. We slid all the way to the end so the others could just come right in.

"That was insane," She said, ripping the number off of her stomach and crumbling it into a ball.

"You get used to it after a while."

"Really?"

"Well, I assume so. I haven't yet but…" she nodded seriously.

"I think that would be kind of hard to deal with. So many girls lusting after you. I mean I know most guys would love it but if I were in your place…I wouldn't like the pressure. Besides it's a real invasion of privacy. Doesn't it ever freak you out? Knowing that somewhere out there girls are fantasizing you doing weird sex things with them?" she asked. She wasn't laughing though. She regarded the question with complete seriousness as I imagined she dealt with most things in her life.

"Yeah it's a bit weird." I didn't feel like saying much more. It was weird how quickly and precisely she understood.

"Does it scare you?" she asked quietly as Niall and Ginny fell into the limo.

"There are better things to be scared of," I whispered.

"Like fear?" the almost smile was back, playing on the corner of her lips.

"Exactly like fear." Harry and Clair got into the car and I realized Rene` and I had been leaning forward, towards each other. We straightened up and waited in silence as Zayn, Becky, Louis, and Caroline got into the car.

The car pulled out of the lot, slowly so no fans would be hit. Harry and Niall were talking loudly about the next album when the driver lowered the sliding window that separated us and him.

"There's been an accident up ahead. It's going to take a while for us to get there." Louis groaned to be dramatic but thanked the driver just the same. When the sliding window was pulled back up Zayn came up with a suggestion.

"We should play a game to get to know each other."

"Truth or dare?" Harry guessed.

"Yeah okay." This felt like some deep rooted ploy to get the girls to make out with them, but I didn't object.

"I get to start!" Louis shouted, making his dancer cover her ears.

"Hot girl! Truth or dare?" he was pointing towards Rene` and I could feel her stiffen by my side. I knew there was a biting remark on the tip of her tongue but somehow she managed to swallow it.

"Truth." She didn't seem particularly happy about being chosen, in fact she seemed a little peeved.

"Okay. What is the dirtiest, nastiest, hottest thing you've ever done?" It didn't take Louis nearly long enough to come up with that question. He'd clearly been thinking about it ever since Zayn suggested the game.

"You don't have to answer that." I told Rene` quickly.

"Oh come off it Liam!" Harry, and Niall shouted at the same time.

"I've never done anything like that," she answered just a fraction of a second too quickly to be believable.

"Oh please," Ginny snorted loudly.

"Ginny!" Rene` warned. But it was too late. The boys knew she had info.

"What what did she do?" Harry pleaded, smiling cheekily.

"She dated her brother!" Ginny screeched. The car fell silent a few people shifted awkwardly.

"My adopted brother. And I wasn't even adopted by that family until I was eight." Rene` shrugged and there was a collective release of breath.

"How long did you date him for?" Louis asked. I could tell that she didn't like answering all these questions. She seemed like a private person. That probably wouldn't work well for one of our dancers. Rumors of our secret love affair would flourish the second the media caught a glimpse of her.

"I started dating him when I was twelve and he was fourteen. We broke up when I was sixteen and he left to chase some big dream of being a rock star. Four years."

"Whoa. What was his name?"

"I've already answered a question. It's someone else's turn," Rene` grumbled.

"Jack. His name was Jack." Rene` shot Ginny a look for answering but the red haired girl seemed totally unabashed.

"Okay I get to ask next. Niall truth or dare?" Rene` asked lightly. Niall seemed pleased at being singled out.

"Dare. Definitely dare."

"I dare you to make Ginny show you're her Irish accent."

She was doing her friend a bit of a favor that much was obvious but it was kind of cute. Niall turned expectantly towards Ginny and the girl blushed. I knew for a fact that girls that blushed drove Niall crazy, (in a good way), so maybe René's little plan worked out.

"Come on let's hear it!" Niall encouraged her.

"Come on let's hear it!" Ginny repeated, perfectly mimicking his accent.

"That was bloody brilliant!" Niall said excitedly, clasping his hand with hers. She blushed an even deeper shade of red.

"I think mines a bit better though," Harry joked, putting on an Irish accent of his own. I laughed loudly, remembering how he'd spent most of our time in Ireland putting on this very accent.


	3. Worth the Risk

Ginny POV:

When we got on the road everything kind of changed. There was a separate tour bus for the dancers. It was much smaller but we were all dealing with it. Well, all of us except Rene` who didn't have to cope with it. Liam had taken a serious shine to her. Everyone could see that, everyone except her.

"No he's just being nice." That was her excuse every time. Did she not realize that normal boys didn't spend virtually all their free time training with their dancer? Was it not obvious that taking her out to dinner every single night wasn't mandatory? I would have been a bit jealous, had Niall not been taking me to dinner too. He didn't pretend to be training though when he spent hours with me at the dance studio. Mostly he would just watch me. Like he was right now as I stretched.

"You know you could always practice with me," I hinted. He was shaking his head before I even finished.

"Nah. I'm a shit dancer. And besides," he paused to wink, "this is way more fun." I felt the familiar blush warm my cheeks and he laughed that nice laugh of his. He got up from his place on the floor and came to sit next to me. One of his hands reached up to cup my face. I was so shocked I froze as his thumb traced the pattern of my rosy blush.

"I'm really glad you auditioned," he breathed, his mouth opening just slightly as he spoke. I gulped. I'd imagined this so many times. This felt like a dream. Then, before I could make my brain work well enough to respond he tilted my chin up and his soft lips were on mine. It was better than I ever thought it would be. And the whole time I wasn't thinking _Oh My God Niall Horan is kissing me. _I couldn't think past those lips that molded so perfectly against mine. I just wanted more. When he turned his head, just slightly, to deepen the kiss I felt myself falling into him. His free hand buried itself in my hair and I couldn't help but smile against his lips.

"Whoa! Sorry I…" Niall and I jerked apart as if we'd been burned. Rene` and Liam were in the doorway. She had an amused smile spreading slowly across her face and he looked like he was holding back laughter.

"Sorry. Did you need the studio?" I rattled, scrambling to my feet.

"Yeah. Liam thinks we should go over the last bit of our dance again," Rene` said brightly. This is why I loved Rene`. Nothing threw her.

"Yeah I bet he does," Niall laughed. From behind Rene` Liam glowered at him.

"Well, we'll get out of your hair." I let Niall grab my hand and pull me from the studio. We were hardly out the door before we burst out laughing.

"Not exactly how I imagined our first kiss," he chuckled, hand over stomach.

"Imagined it have you?" I was teasing him but his smile vanished, seriousness claiming his face. It had been a month since he'd first picked me at that audition. A lot had changed since then. I'd lost my One Direction obsession and fallen for the boy behind the band. And it scared me. Being in love with an idea is one thing. Being in love with an actual person is something completely different, especially when that person was a superstar.

"All the time," he said soberly. I bit my bottom lip, looking down at my shoes, and tried to hide my smile.

"Yeah, me too." Niall was always joking around but seeing him serious like this was strangely endearing too. He wanted me. A fact I couldn't comprehend much less accept. I understood why all the boys were fawning all over Rene`. She was about a million different kinds of beautiful. The fact that Niall saw me, even when I was standing next to her, meant something.

"Niall! Come on we're gunna be late for the interview." Harry shouted down the hallway, completely oblivious as to what he was interrupting.

"Yeah mate one minute!" Niall responded. Then he turned to me and lowered his voice considerably. "When I take you to dinner tonight, do you care if I think of it as a date?"

I shook my head and let him place a kiss on my cheek before he ducked his head back into the studio to warn Liam.

"We're gunna be late man. Let's go." A minute later both the boys emerged from the studio, and left with the cheerful call that they would see us both at dinner. Rene` came out a few seconds later.

"Wow. No matter how many times I go over it Liam just cannot get that last move." She shook her head sadly and leaned against the wall opposite me.

"Are you serious? Are you really falling for this? Liam is the best dancer in the band. He can probably do that routine in his sleep. He just wants to spend more time with you. It's kinda cute really."

"No! Who would do that?"

"A horny teenage boy." For a smart girl Rene` could be really dumb sometimes.

"Well I want to be mad but…Liam's…"

"Amazingly hot?" Rene` didn't get crushes. She acknowledged guys were good looking and moved on. The fact that every conversation I'd had with her in the past month began with "Liam and I…" told me that the tides were changing.

"It's more than that Gin. He's sweet and caring and he doesn't looks at my eyes when I talk, not my boobs. And he listens. And he's honest…" she bit down on her French Manicured thumb nail and looked up at me through her long lashes.

"You like him a lot huh?" she nodded. "Enough to risk this job?" this time she paused but nodded just the same.

"Then go for it! I sure as hell am with Niall."

"So, how do I tell Liam I'm willing to break our rule?" it was kind of funny really. Normally the prettier the girl the more boyfriends she'd had. But Rene` had so little experience dating it was practically unheard of.

"You don't tell him anything. But tonight when he comes to get us for our double date with Niall, change out of the yoga pants and slip into something hot. Then when he tries to kiss you good night, and trust me he will try, just…let him." It was a pretty simple solution but she looked doubtful.

"I don't know Ginny. I told him I just wanted to be friends."

"Wear that little white dress of yours and he won't be able to resist." I tugged on the end of her shirt and she laughed.

"Fine but you're doing my hair," she giggled.

Liam POV:

When we pulled up to the front of the hotel there were already about a hundred screaming fans. Somehow our location must have been leaked. It didn't really matter, we had security and Rene`, Ginny, Niall and I would be leaving soon anyway. The car was parked but we all waited a minute, bracing ourselves and letting Louis and Niall finish their conversation.

"There's no shame in having a crush on your dancer mate. I've already banged mine twice. She gives _the best _head." Louis was telling Niall.

"Alright mate," Niall winced, forcing a laugh.

"No, seriously. Last night she went down south for like an hour. It was bloody brilliant. What about you Liam? You gettin' any from your girl? If I had her I literally would not rest until I'd gotten into those super sexy panties of hers. She looks like she's got some strong knees if you get what I'm saying." Louis gave an obnoxious laugh and elbowed Harry.

"Shut up Louis! What the hell is the matter with you?" I couldn't even stop it from coming out of my mouth. I didn't like it when he talked about any girl like that but the second the conversation switched to her…it got personal.

"What's wrong with you? I was only jokin'," he snapped, already on the defensive.

"Yeah well it wasn't fucking funny!" Harry and Zayn were looking at me like I'd gone mental; Niall on the other hand was kind of bobbing his head in agreement.

"Whatever. I'm leaving." The interview had already gone poorly, I'd stuttered a lot and been ignored the rest of the time. I really didn't need this right now. I got out of the car, followed closely by Niall. I was so irked I didn't even stop to sign any autographs which I instantly felt bad for. But we were already about half an hour late picking up the girls and I knew Niall was really excited about tonight.

"I think I'm going to change. Meet you and Rene` in the lobby in ten minutes?" he asked me while trying to check his breath with his hand.

"Right. I'll see you in ten." I walked to the elevator alone while Niall opted to take the stairs. The other boys were still outside, taking photos and all that. The hotel we were staying at was kind of plush. The beds were huge, the walls painted a delicate golden color. When I stepped into the elevator there was even a man there to press the button for me.

"Top floor please." The man nodded a brief flash of recognition in his eyes as he pressed floor 22.

"So you're the reason adolescent girls are crowding the place," he grunts as the elevator shoots upward.

"Yeah I suppose so. Me and my four band mates." He eyes me, as if wondering what all the fuss is about and steps aside when the doors open. As I'm stepping off the lift I feel my cell phone start to vibrate in my pocket.

"Hello?"

"Have I been stood up? Ginny's getting a little worried over here." Her voice was like wind chimes, musical.

"Never! We were just runnin' a bit late is all. I'm really sorry I should have texted you. I'm at your door right now," I told her, coming to a stop in front of room 513.

"Oh…well don't think this phone call is going to give you an excuse not to knock!" she hung up before I could ask about that. I was still laughing as my knuckles rasped against the door, three sharp knocks.

"I wonder who it could be!" a sarcastic voice muttered on the other side of the wall. I opened my mouth at the same time as the door, prepared to make some funny little jibe but when I saw her my brain completely stopped working. I couldn't have told you my own name. Her black hair was slung over one shoulder, done into an intricate braid. And the dress, of my God the dress. It was ivory a stark contrast from her raven hair, silken, and tied around her neck leaving her shoulders bare. The neck line was deliciously low; I could just make out the swell of her breasts.

"How do I look?" she asked, twirling around. Oh dear god. It was backless.

"I…I…I have to go change." Compared to her I would probably always look sadly unequal, but there was no way I was going out with her wearing that while I stayed in my old T-shirt and sweats.

"No you look lovely!" she protested, looping her arm with mine and sliding her small purse strap onto one of her shoulders.

"No, really I've got to change," I told her, leading her to my room instead of to the lifts. I dug around in my pocket and swiped the key card. Rene` dropped my arm and pressed her back against the wall.

"You don't have to wait out here. I can change in the bathroom. Please, come in." she hesitated only a moment before entering.

"It really is unnecessary. You always look great."

"Yeah well not compared to you." I dug around in my luggage until I found my nice collared shirt and a pair of khaki pants.

"That's nice of you." She laughed a little and sat down on my gigantic bed, crossing her legs. There was a slit in the side of her dress I hadn't noticed before. It left one of her legs completely unsheathed. And it left me looking like an idiot because I kind of paused in awe when I first saw it. Trying to collect myself, I shook my head to clear it and ran to the bathroom. I changed quickly, spending more time trying to get one uncooperative piece of hair to fall into line than anything.

"Ginny just texted me. Her and Niall are waiting in the lobby," Rene` called to me. Right then. This was as good as it was going to get.


	4. Paint

_**Thanks to those of you who reviewed—it really made me get to writing. And for what it's worth I don't think they guys (Louis for instance) would really be like this. It's just for the story, I love each and every one of the boys. Directioner 4 life 3**_

Rene` POV:

"Will a booth be okay Mr. Payne?" The hostess was all wide eyed and star struck, more so by Liam then Niall. The rest of us might as well be invisible.

"Fine thanks." As she led us all to a secluded little booth in the back Liam non chalantly scooped up my hand. I gripped it tightly, blushing so hard my cheeks burned. We settled into the cozy little booth and I took that opportunity to survey my surroundings. It was dimly lit and small so it would look quaint but it was clear this place was solely for A-listers. No way in hell could Gin and I have gotten reservations here if we hadn't been with the boys.

Niall was whispering something in Ginny's ear, making her giggle and lean back into him. A camera flashed, nearly blinding me and I saw one of the other patrons with a camera pointed in our direction. Niall straightened up quickly and Liam edged a quarter of an inch away from me.

"That'll be in the papers by tomorrow," Niall cursed viciously. Then he looked at Ginny and it was such a protective gaze I had to fight not to "awe" at the pair of them.

"Sorry mate," Liam said softly just as the waitress came over to read us the specials. She was young, cute, and kept getting tongue tied whenever she glanced at the boys.

We ordered and I'll be honest—the food was amazing. But rather than that the rest of the night was awkward. Liam spent most of the time trying to block me from the prying eyes of the people next to us. And all I kept thinking was _how could a guy like him ever like a girl like me? _He was so perfect, and beautiful. And let's face it—I was damaged. Damaged goods with a bruised and beaten heart.

"You ready to go?" Liam asked after we'd scarfed down all our food without even surfacing for air. Ugh, tonight was so not going like I'd planned.

"Yeah I'm ready," Ginny said hesitantly, clearly upset by Niall's soured mood. As it was, my own heart was sinking by the minute. I felt like a complete idiot: hair up, face slathered in makeup, and a stupid dress that quite frankly showed off quite a bit more of me than I liked.

We scooted out of the booth and when we stepped outside the restaurant I was blinded by a million different cameras going off at once. I stumbled backwards and Liam caught me, hauling me forward by the crook of my elbow. At first I was angry about his lack of tact, then I realized that he was being pushed forward by the people trying to get pictures and autographs. The limo was only a few yards away but it didn't matter. We were completely surrounded.

"Slut!" I heard the cry a split second before it landed on me. It hit my chest hard, knocking the breath out of me. Liam had stepped in front of me right before it hit. Whatever it was, he had received at least half of the blow. I looked down and saw it: crimson blood, slashed across my ivory dress.

"Rene`!" Liam cried. He too was splattered with red but he seemed completely unconcerned about that. At first my brain was frozen, lagging and then all I could think was _Did Liam Payne just try to take a bullet for me?_ But his voice was filled with such unguarded terror that somehow….it cleared my head. Slowly, I was regaining my breath and realized that I wasn't in pain anymore. As the sound of clicking camera's doubled I touched a finger tentatively to my chest. It came back gooey and red. Paint.

"I'm ok," I told him quietly, frustrated because my eyes were stinging badly, threatening to tear. Liam was horror struck and turned savagely towards my attacker. Police were already on the scene because the boys were there and they were supposed to be making sure nothing got out of hand. Well done.

"I want her arrested," he bit out, pointing an accusing finger at a girl with brown hair and an 'I 3 Liam Payne' tee. The way she was staring at him was like her boyfriend had just betrayed her. And she was young, maybe only twelve. I bit my bottom lip, torn and then finally reached out to gently touch his shoulder.

"Please, just drop it." I tugged him away and when a couple of police officers started to rush forward I waved them back. "I won't be pressing charges," I said loudly, fighting my way through the mass of people to get to the limo. It was much easier now that I was covered in paint—no one wanted that all over them.

Liam POV:

"Are you alright?" I asked her for maybe the fiftieth time. We were in my hotel room—Ginny and Niall had disappeared into the room her and Rene` shared so Ray had come back here to clean up.

"I'm fine I swear," she said, taking the end of a damp towel to her throat. All she was really doing was smearing the mess around and I couldn't help the small smile that tugged at my lips. I ventured over to her and tugged it out of her grip. She relinquished it with a sigh of thanks and tilted her head back so I could get a better look at her scarlet covered neck.

"I don't know why you didn't let me have that girl arrested. She would have gotten off with little more than a slap on the wrist," I could still fell the way my heart had dropped when I'd seen her covered in what I presumed to be blood. Just remembering it made my heart start to pound harder with panic. No one should ever have to know that kind of terror.

"Because Liam, she's in love with you. No one can blame her for that." My hand paused on her throat, our eyes slowly meeting. I swallowed hard, noticing that the only thing I could see were her lips. The world had shrunk to just those two pouty lips and the girl they belonged to. And nothing mattered but my need to kiss her. It didn't even matter that she didn't want me like I wanted her.

Then, like we were pulled together by some magnetic force, our lips met in a hungry kiss. She tasted just the way I dreamed she would: impossibly delicious; like no matter how many times I did this it would never be enough to sustain me. Rene` was soft, slim and capable with skin that begged to be touched. And I was all too happy to oblige. All I could feel was her warmth, pressed against me. And all I could hear was the whimpering noise she was making in the back of her throat. Rene` had become my entire world with one kiss.

"You're so perfect," I breathed against her lips. She laughed in disbelief and pulled me closer still, moaning a little as our tongues met in a slow dance. We took our time. Hands roughly explored each other while our kisses stayed gentle. Our tongue's slid together, desperate to learn all they could about the other. I didn't know why but nothing had prepared me for this, for _her. _Kissing her was better than making love to anyone else. I felt like I could do this forever, and I would have been happy too but when we finally stopped it was because someone was pounding on my door.

"Liam? Is Rene` still in there? Ginny's getting worried. It's nearly three in the morning!" Niall whined. Rene` and I broke apart, a feline smile already curling her lips. We were still in the bathroom but she was sitting on the cabinet, limbs wrapped around me in a desperate need for closeness. I was sadly confused as to when she even got up there. The world really did dissolve into nothing whenever she was near me.

"Yeah I'm coming out now Niall," Rene` answered in a throaty voice. She smiled at me, nose crinkling, when she realized how different her voice sounded after that intense make out session.

"Don't go," I almost begged. My head was still foggy; the taste of her lips drugged me, I was hooked on her, irrevocably so.

"I'll see you tomorrow!" she protested, biting her swollen bottom lip.

"But you won't want me tomorrow," I hadn't realized how much I'd been dreading it until I said it aloud. Rene's` lower lip jutted out and with one light motion she hopped off the counter.

"I'll want you," she said simply. Those three little words from her comforted me more than any speech from anyone else could.

"Good." I tried to reach her level of blasé but failed miserably. She smirked.

"I'll see you tomorrow Lover Boy," she kissed me on the cheek, and disappeared, leaving her Rose and jasmine infused smell behind her.

Niall forced his way into my room as she passed and he had this shit eating look on his face. He clucked knowingly.

"_What_?" I hissed at him. Niall just continued to smile. "Nothing happened," I insisted. I refused to become like Louis, bragging about everything a girl did with me. Normally, I wasn't this much of a prude but what I did with Rene` was different. _She _was different.

"Surrrreee," Niall drug the word out, then nodded towards the mirror. Confused, I turned to look. What I saw was my lips coated in Rene's` cherry lip-gloss and part of my face, hands, and shirt smothered in the red paint from her neck.

"Not a word to the others," I said in a defeated voice. Niall just nodded, his face drawn. That's when it hit me. He understood. He understood _exactly. _He and Ginny might just be serious.


End file.
